


the reaper

by frogchamp (ediblesunshine25)



Series: cryptid au snippets & scenes [2]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Fights, Gen, Mentions of Death, One Shot, cryptid AU, immortal!dream, lots of it!!, reaper!techno, right - Freeform, takes place almost directly after the last one-shot, tha boy is stuck in tha well again, there's a bit of yelling/passive-aggressive. talking. in here, yes i just hand typed that too what of it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:08:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28244454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ediblesunshine25/pseuds/frogchamp
Summary: the man wears a grim frown and a crimson cloak. his long pink hair, braided over his shoulder, swings back and forth like a scythe. he reeks of inexorability. dream’s eyes widen (the raised scars running across his face and arms weren’t there last time).hello, technoblade.a century has passed in the well, a human lifespan is up.dream has a visitor.
Series: cryptid au snippets & scenes [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2061309
Comments: 6
Kudos: 48





	the reaper

**Author's Note:**

> hello here is more angst this time with reaper boi :)
> 
> ofc all credit goes to [@heytherestilinski on tumblr](https://heytherestilinski.tumblr.com/), they're amazing  
> for those who are new to the cryptid au, you should probably read the first work in this series ("the well, the coin, and the wish") for some background, but basically: dream is an immortal being who gets stuck in a well. technoblade is a reaper who takes the souls of dead people to the afterlife. this should help this make sense idk it's just a precaution
> 
> there's mentions of death throughout and at some points dream wants to die (not sure if this counts as suicidal ideation but. my manz is sad)
> 
> uh enjoy!

dream sleeps. he has been sleeping for the past ten years. his chest rattles with every shallow breath and he has a fuzzy awareness of unconsciousness. he should be dead.

he feels a tug. not at his physical body, at his heart, sort of. like he felt with the well, but more, and painful. he feels the warmth being leached from his already freezing body. there is a presence: one of reserved neutrality, of steps back and a hand on a scabbard, of wary posture, of darkness, of… blood. dream’s eyes are closed, but a vision of the presence appears in his head.

the man wears a grim frown and a crimson cloak. his long pink hair, braided over his shoulder, swings back and forth like a scythe. he reeks of inexorability. dream’s eyes widen (the raised scars running across his face and arms weren’t there last time).

_ hello, technoblade. _

“hello.”

_ i’m so tired. _

“it is your time. a human life has passed.”

_ i’m human. please. please. i know it’s never worked, but please try. _

techno’s eyes harden. “what do you think i’m doing here?”

_ thank you. _

techno sighs. he holds a hand out, palm flat, in front of him. dream feels the pull.

“it’s not working.”

_ try harder. please. _ if dream could breathe right now, his chest would be shaking with sobs. he can’t cry but gods, he wants to.

“i’m sorry.” techno’s hand falls back to his side. his eyes are unreadable. the corners of his lips turn down further. techno tilts his head back, closes his eyes, and sighs again.

_ is this the sixth time it hasn’t worked? _

“no, it’s past the tenth. i’ve lost count.” sometimes techno simply gives up, but every so often he’ll come to visit dream at the end of a century. technoblade can never take his soul.

_ why can you never take my soul? can’t you at least try a little harder? please. _

“i can’t control this! if i could take your soul, i would. this is as frustrating as it is to me as it is to you.” techno’s mouth, open from his raised voice, exposes his tusks. dream shudders at the sight.

_ there is no way you understand this, it’s more frustrating than you will ever know. everyone i’ve loved turns to dust and i’m forced to endure it. their lives to me are like… like a mayfly’s to a normal human. i can’t form lasting relationships because they’re only ripped from me by a force i can’t control. sometimes by you. _

his own words sink into his skin like stiletto blades. their truth, how he’s never confronted them, how he’s never thought about it like this before. they sink into his skin, little pinpricks of novel shock.

sometimes you never know how you feel until you say it aloud.

technoblade still looms in front of him, this time with a hard stare. dream looks up out of his thoughts and is almost startled. then again, what did he expect? to say something like that and not get a reaction?

“i know-” techno sighs yet again. “i can’t pretend to know exactly how you feel, but this is difficult for me too. i’ll try one more time and then i’ll be on my way.”

_ do you have more innocent people’s lives to take? _

“i’m not the one who kills. i deliver the souls.” his voice is steely but well-disguised.

_ i concede. now could you please try one last time? _

“fine.” hand held out, palm flat, and dream is colder. the warmth is seeping out through his pores like blood.

_ thank you. _

“not done quite yet.” techno’s brow furrows in concentration. the cold now washes over dream in waves, sapping a bit more from him each time. dream is so tired.

his essence ( _ no, his soul, _ he corrects himself) is draining.

the air shimmers in front of him. it’s not a trick of the light, this is dream’s head, it can’t be.

techno strains.

dream holds on, clings to the notion of “everything will be alright,” of “this is the end.” because it is, right?

his thoughts blur into each other, as does his internal visualization of techno. finally, he will be at peace. he’ll miss the tree… he hopes wilbur doesn’t worry too much.

dream waits.

the fog in his mind separates just enough for him to feel warmth flare in his fingertips. no, no, this must be a fluke. it must be. he… he was finally going. no, please, no. it was finally happening.

techno lets out a noise. “your thoughts are loud. i’m sorry.”

_ you. you promised me this! it was working, i was finally dying! how could you be so cruel? i thought you were going to help me, to save me. _

if tears are running down dream’s face, he wouldn’t know.

techno seethes.

“you think i don’t know? you think i don’t know how much it hurts? i have to take people from their lives and tell them they will never return. i have to watch them plead, then i have to repeat that this is final. and it’s normal for me. it barely bothers me. then you with your impervious soul and your audible thoughts and your immortality mess it all up.” each deadly calm word hits dream full force and he shakes.

“i tried to take your soul.” techno sinks to the ground. “i could feel it parting from your body.” his voice is unstable, shaking like dream’s chest. “i was almost there.”

_ you were, _ dream sobs faintly.

“then you pulled your soul back to your body.” techno’s voice evens back out.

_ this is- this is in no way my fault. _

“i don’t think a singular person could be blamed for this. i just wish it would stop causing so much pain.” techno shakes his head.

_ didn’t know you could show empathy. _

techno’s mask hardens. he rises back to his feet. “i’ve done all i can, now i have other tasks to complete.”

he wants to say something about techno taking more innocent lives but dream stops himself from making him any angrier. 

_ i’ll see you in another century, _ he says instead.

“you will not.” techno’s presence disappears and dream suddenly feels alone. 

servant of death, dream muses, reaper of souls. thief of hope.

who was he kidding? dream wasn’t going to die any time soon. he had lived hundreds of lifespans already, this would not be his last.

technoblade wasn’t a thief of hope, dream simply shouldn’t have had hope in the first place.

**Author's Note:**

> here we are again, if ur here from the discord hi ily,,,
> 
> leave some kudos, maybe a comment, fuel my brain's messy shitstorm, idk
> 
> shameless self-promo: my tumblr is [@non-binnery](https://non-binnery.tumblr.com/) if you'd like to follow me there
> 
> um yeah end notes are always awkward, thanks for reading


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